The plan calls for closing eight schools, building two new ones and making improvements at the district’s other 38 early childhood, elementary, middle and high school buildings. Early childhood education will be consolidated into four centers, two of which will be Nashold and Beyer elementary schools. Bilingual classes will be moved closer to where bilingual students live. Renaissance Gifted Academy and Maria Montessori will move to different buildings. All elementary schools will become kindergarten through fifth-grade schools.

“Our plan is designed to have all students in improved learning environments by the 2018 school year,” said Rockford School Superintendent Ehren Jarrett. “Some will move earlier.”

District staff will start discussing the first moves with affected teachers and parents in the upcoming school year. No students will be moved for the 2014-2015 school year.

New school timing

Board members adopted the facilities plan with conditions.

The district can not spend any money on new schools until after the board approves a report from the new Facilities Plan Oversight Committee, which is being charged with tracking the improvements and the spending. That report will not be presented until December 2015.

At the same time, the board expects to receive audited budget results for fiscal year 2015.

Other conditions included: name a school after Martin Luther King Jr., present a budget for new classroom furniture for all schools, identify funds for $16 million in deferred maintenance, present a budget addressing demolition of any buildings owned by the district with no anticipated use and continue to explore ways to add air conditioning to buildings without central air.

The amendments will help the district treat all students fairly and build trust with residents, said Board member Tim Rollins.

“We will be much more transformed if we can build trust,” he said, referencing the ongoing Transform Rockford movement.

Powers attributed her abstention from Tuesday night’s vote to a lack of trust.

“There is no trust among this board for me,” she said.

Board members agreed to postpone new schools until July 2017, Powers said, but it was changed to December 2015 in the past three days.

Historic vote

The district’s new facilities plan represents the largest one-time investment in Rockford public school facilities of all time. Some construction — such as cafeteria additions at elementary schools and fieldhouse additions at high schools — already has started.

“This is our confidence,” Board member Mike Connor said. “We are going to do something that builds our future. ... This is our moment to pass the naysayers.”

Fall referendum

Also at Tuesday’s meeting, the board approved a voters referendum for Nov. 4.

The School Board plans to ask voters for permission to build one or more new schools using some of the money voters approved in a 2012 referendum. The plan calls for two new schools.

The district went back and forth on putting the words “new schools” on the 2012 referendum and eventually went with “build additions” and “equip and repair.” That was before the Facilities Task Force Steering Committee met for almost a year and came up with a recommendation that includes new schools.

Now, to be clear with voters, the board wants a second referendum. The board could build new schools without voter approval by using a land-lease option, but individual board members have expressed reservations with that.

Board members added an amendment to the plan Tuesday night stating as much.

The district will not spend any money on new buildings until voters pass a referendum supporting new school construction, the amendment states.